Dover, Del. (Nov. 4, 2013) --- Seven former Hornet athletic greats and a coach, along with two championships teams were honored during Delaware State University's 13th annual Hall of Fame Banquet and Induction Ceremony and the University's Martin Luther King Student Center last Friday evening.
The new hall of fame inductees were also recognized at halftime of the Hornets' 22-20 last-second football win over Howard on Saturday.
The emcee for the event was legendary South Carolina State University head football coach and College Football Hall of Famer Willie Jeffries.
Delaware State University President Dr. Harry L. Williams attended the ceremony, along with DSU Director of Athletics Candy Young and about 20 past hall of fame inductees, including former National Football League standouts Darnerian McCants and Jamaal Jackson.
The latest DSU Hall-of-Fame class includes baseball standout Scott Martin (2000-03), the Hornets' all-time leader with 55 home runs and 221 runs batted in. A three-time All-MEAC First Team selection, Martin captured the conference “triple crown” in 2001, topping all league players in home runs (18), RBI (77) and batting average (.432). He was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the 2003 Major League Baseball draft. Prior to enrolling at Delaware State, Martin was a star player at Middletown (Del.) High School.
The Hornets' Hall of Fame also welcomed its third softball player. Catrina Ansbach (2004-07), the MEAC's all-time leader with 44 home runs, is also tops in school history in hits (224), runs batted in (164) and doubles (45). Ansbach was an All-MEAC First Team selection in 2005 and 06, a second team pick in 2007 and was the league's Rookie-of-the-Year in 2004. The former Caesar Rodney High School (Del.) star led the Hornets to two MEAC North softball titles and two MEAC Tournament championship game appearances.
The star receiver and head coach of the Hornets' 2007 MEAC champion football team were also inducted into the hall-of-fame.
Shaheer McBride (2004-07) is Delaware State's career leader with 201 receptions and 3,007 receiving yards. McBride also shares the Hornets' career record with 33 touchdown catches. He's tied for second in MEAC history in touchdown receptions, fourth in receiving yards and fifth in receptions. McBride was a two-time All-MEAC First Team selection and was the league's Rookie-of-the-Year in 2004. He was signed by NFL's Philadelphia Eagles in 2008.
The head coach of Hornets' 2007 MEAC championship team Al Lavan joined McBride in the 2013 DSU Hall-of-Fame class. Lavan was recognized as the Football Championship Subdivision Region II Coach-of-the-Year and was runner-up for the Eddie Robinson Award for top FCS coach after leading Delaware State to the '07 MEAC crown, the school's first in 16 years. That season, the Hornets became the second team in MEAC to post an 8-0 league mark; and set a school record with 10 wins.
The 2013 DSU Hall-of-Fame class also includes football greats Dwight Williams and Stanley Burris, two-sport star Pedro Swann, Sr.; and basketball standout Paul Newman.
Williams (1967-70) was the top defensive back on the Hornets' 1970 squad that led all NCAA Division II teams in total defense (103.5 ypg) and rushing defense (-4.9 ypg), which still stands as a national D-II record. He also ranks among the school leaders with 12 career interceptions.
Burris was a two-time All-MEAC and Black College All-America Third Team offensive lineman. A Division I-AA Academic All-America, he was a member of the Hornets' 1991 MEAC championship team; and helped pave the way to a school-record 730 total yards vs. Morgan State in 1993.
Swann, a baseball and football standout, was Delaware State's 1970 Male Athlete-of-the-Year. In baseball, he was tops in the CIAA and among the national Division II leaders with a .471 average to help lead the Hornets to a share of the conference championship in 1970. That same year, he was top receiver and punter on the Hornets' football team.
Newman (1987-91) ranked fifth in DSU men's basketball history with 1,485 points when he graduated in 1991. He averaged 17 points per game to help lead the Hornets to their first MEAC Tournament championship game appearance in 1991.
The 1956 Delaware State football team was the first in school history to share the CIAA title. That year, the Hornets were 7-1-1 overall and 5-0-1 in the CIAA, outscoring league opponents 208-39. The '56 Hornets posted five shutouts, including three in a row.
The 1962 Hornet baseball team captured a share of the CIAA championship for the first time in school history. Led by eight .300 hitters, Delaware State was 10-3 overall record and 7-2 in the CIAA that year.
2013 Delaware State University Athletic Hall of Fame Class
Catrina Ansbach – Softball
Stanley Burris – Football
Al Lavan – Coach -Footbal)
Scott Martin – Baseball
Shaheer McBride - Football
Paul Newman – Basketball
Pedro Swann, Sr. – Football, Baseball
Dwight Williams – Football
Special Honors
1956 football team
1962 baseball team
